Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 05.djvu/272

LEFT IVES 218 IZABAL by arms. He was the first Russian sovereign to be crowned as Czar. He subdued Kazan and Astrakhan, and from his reign dates the first annexation of Siberia. He concluded a commercial treaty with Queen Elizabeth, after the English had discovered (1553) the way to Archangel by sea. But his hand fell with merciless cruelty upon the boyars of his kingdom, and upon some of his towns, as Moscow, Tver, and Novgorod. In the last named some 60,000 people were slain in six weeks. Ivan died of sorrow for his son, whom three years before he had slain in a mad fit of rage. IVES, HALSEY COOLEY, an Amer- ican artist; born in Montour Falls, N. Y., in 1846. He studied art in South Ken- sington, London. In 1893 he w^as placed in charge of the art department at the Chicago World's Fair, and occupied the same position in relation to the St. Louis Exposition. At the latter he re- ceived a grand prize for services to art education. He was several times ap- pointed representative of the United States to decide on art matters abroad. He was appointed director of the Museum and School of Fine Arts at St. Louis, in 1896. He died in 1911. IVORY, the osseous matter of the tusks of the elephant, and of the teeth or tusks of the hippopotamus, walrus, and narwhal. The ivory of the hippo- potamus is preferred by the dentist, be- ing free from grain and much harder and of a purer white than that of the elephant. The shavings and saw-dust of ivory may by burning be converted into a black powder, used in painting, named ivory black. Africa supplies the great bulk of ivory, the Indian wild elephant having become so scarce of late years that India is now obliged to import a considerable quantity of ivory. A vast amount of fossil ivory is also exported from eastern Siberia to various countries. African ivory fetches a higher price than any other, being dense in texture, susceptible of a higher polish and not so liable to turn yellow when exposed to the light as the Indian kind. The tusks of a full grown elephant seldom measure over six feet and weigh from 100 to 200 pounds. The tusk is usually solid for about half its length, the base being quite thin and, therefore, of little use for commercial purposes. IVORY COAST, a part of the N. coast of the Gulf of Guinea, West Africa, embraces the districts between Cai>e Palmas and the river Assini. Its W. portion belongs to Liberia; its E., now counted as part of the Gold Coast, is shared between Great Britain and France. The name bears no political meaning. IVRY (e-vre'), a village in the French department of Eure. On the Plain of Ivry was fought, March 14, 1590, the famous battle between Henry of Navarre and the armies of the League. Pop. about 1,200. IVY, a climbing plant of the genus Hedera {H. Helix), natural order Arnli-. acesc. The leaves are smooth and shin- ing, varying much in form, from oval entire to three and five lobed; and their perpetual verdure gives the plant a beau- tiful appearance. The flowers are greenish and inconspicuous. H. Helix (the common ivy) is found throughout almost the whole of Europe and in many parts of Asia and Africa. The Irish ivy is cultivated on account of the large size of its foliage and rapid growth. Several varieties of ivy are grown in American gardens. The ivy attains a great age and becomes several inches thick. The wood is soft and porous, and when cut into very thin plates may be used for filtering liquids. In Switzer- land and the S. of Europe it is employed in making various useful articles. The ivy has been celebrated from remote antiquity, and was held sacred in some countries, as Greece and Egypt. Its medicinal properties are unimportant. Chinese ivy {Parechites Thunbergii) is a climbing shrub with privet-like leaves and sweet-scented flowers. IXIA, in botany, a genus of Iridacex. It consists of beautiful Cape bulbs, with spikes of showy flowers. I. viridiflora has large sea-green flowers, with black markings. It is from the Cape of Good Hope. IXTACCIHUATL (ets-tak'se-wat-el), a high mountain in Mexico, estimated height 16,077 feet, though some authori- ties pronounce it higher than Popocate- petl. IXTLE, a Mexican fiber, probably the production of a species of the pineapple family. IZABAL, a lake in Guatemala; also the name of a district in the same coun- try. Area 4,500 square miles; pop. about 4,000.